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M65 Atomic Cannon

1952 COLD WAR KOREAN WAR SELF-PROPELLED ARTILLERY

The history of the M65 nuclear gun

The U.S. government had problems keeping its European allies silent during the Cold War, when a Russian blitzkrieg loomed and tens of thousands of tanks rolled randomly across Europe. A small tactical nuclear weapon is needed to deter Russia while easing the burden on America's European allies. The project was assigned in 1949 to a man - Robert Schwartz - who began his design work at the Pentagon, quarantined for 15 days in a guarded, locked room.

During this time, the weapon began to take shape, and the project was transferred to the Picatinny Arsenal in New Jersey shortly after. Picatinny Arsenal was commissioned to develop shells for weapons that could carry nuclear payloads. Once again, Schwartz was locked up to complete the model of the cannon and its carriage.

Various strategies were considered, from towed platforms to self-propelled guns. The next step is to sell the project to the Pentagon. That fell to Samuel Feltman, Picatinny's head of research and development, who eventually pushed the project forward. After the contract was signed, Schwartz was named program manager and, with a select team, completed the nuclear cannon program, which took place in 1952 and cost $800,000, within three years.

It's over 80 feet long - the largest motorized gun ever built.

Schwartz chose a combination of two modes (trailer and self-propelled). It resembles a large fire truck with two 375-horsepower tractors at each end. The dual tractor system enables independent driving, with the two tractors facing in opposite directions while the driver communicates using a redesigned phone system. This towing assembly can make a clean right turn at 35 mph on 28-foot-wide paved or gravel roads.

Tractors on both ends will return the system to the firing position. The fully hydraulic design has no electronics, the M65 is semi-mobile and takes about 15 minutes to be ready to fire - this is done using a hydraulic jack and winch. The gun itself is balanced on its 9-foot circular base. Five to seven firefighters can move the gun 360 degrees and use a hydraulic rammer to load the 600-pound shell into the breech.

If necessary, the gears are backed up in case enemy fire damages the hydraulics. The recoil from firing a 600-pound shell is absorbed by two recoil buffers, one separating the barrel from the superstructure and the second between the superstructure and the landing gear.

On January 20, 1953, Eisenhower became President of the United States. The opening parade featured 65 bands, 50 official vehicles and 5,000 soldiers, 22,000 soldiers, 350 horses, 3 elephants, a team of Alaskan dogs and an M65 nuclear cannon - a no-brainer for the Soviets and Chinese reminder. On May 25, 1953, the atomic cannon was fired, with a 15 kt shell and W9 warhead detonating within 6.2 miles of the Nevada Proving Ground, codenamed "Grable." This is the only nuclear warhead ever fired from an artillery piece.

As the Korean War continued, rumors of a possible deployment of a nuclear gun capable of firing a 15kt W9 nuclear warhead on the Korean peninsula heralded the end of the war.

A total of 20 M65 systems were built, of which about 10-16 entered service in 1957, many throughout Europe. During the 1950s, M65s were often moved into the woods, leaving the Soviets to guess their location. The M65 is the strangest weapon the Ordnance Corps has ever produced, even though the cannon played an important deterrent role in continental Europe's tactical nuclear arsenal. The troops called them "Atomic Annie" after the K5 guns "Anzio Annie" used by the Germans in Italy.

The M65 was decommissioned in 1963, and eight of them are on display at the Military Museum.